Harming someone's reputation in speech with falsehoods is known as slander, and doing the same thing in writing is known as libel (which sometimes includes speech as well). Any ordinary citizen who can claim to have suffered harm as a result of such defamation may sue. So why aren't politicians suing all the time? Because an exception is made for "public persons" (a category that includes most other celebrities as well), who must also prove that any such statement was made with "reckless disregard for the truth". And although, even by that standard, public persons are defamed all the time, most of them have decided that it's better to just grin and bear it.
The article was full of lies and defamations.
accused the newspaper columnist of defamation of character
Recent Examples on the WebBut Harvey, who claims to be the real-life inspiration behind the Martha character, is now pursuing Netflix for a nine-figure defamation claim.—Byryan Hogg, Fortune Europe, 7 June 2024 Harvey went on to file a suit against the streamer for defamation, negligence, and privacy violations in June.—Aja Romano, Vox, 7 June 2024 Maher’s always incorrigible political comedy takes the leftist approach to everything, using Democrats’ favorite tactic: insult and defamation.—Armond White, National Review, 7 June 2024 On the day that one year window went into effect, on Thanksgiving of 2022, Carroll filed suit alleging defamation and battery against Trump.—Alexandra Glorioso, Miami Herald, 7 June 2024 See all Example Sentences for defamation
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'defamation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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